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Mobile operators invest USD 2.24bn in network upgrades in Nigeria in 2012 [IntelliNews - Weekly Reports](IntelliNews - Weekly Reports Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Mobile operators invest USD 2.24bn in network upgrades in Nigeria in 2012Nigerian mobile phone services operators invested a total of USD 2.24bn into upgrade and expansion of their networks, but customers continued to complain about the poor quality of services they receive, BusinessDay reported. The biggest mobile operator in Africa's most populous country, MTN Nigeria, part of South Africa-based telecoms group MTN, invested USD 1.4bn in its network last year with the goal of enhancing network capacity and improving the quality of services. Its smaller rival, Indian-owned Airtel invested USD 600mn in its network last year. Another Indian-owned operator, Etisalat, invested USD 184mn in network expansion through the building of about 1,000 new base stations. Visafone invested about USD 20mn and Globacom invested some USD 6mn. However, clients, both businesses and individuals, continue to complain mostly about drop calls and incoherent voice transmission that have been raising their costs for cellphone services. In May 2012, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) imposed a total fine of NGN 1.17bn (EUR 5.6mn) to the four leading local mobile operators for rendering poor services to their customers during March and April. The commission recently said it would impose new sanctions on telecom operators if poor quality of services persists. Nigeria has five GSM operators – MTN, Globacom, Airtel, Etisalat and state-owned Mtel and four CDMA operators. The country has over 100 million mobile phone subscribers. (c) 2012 Emerging Markets Direct Media Holdings LLC Provided by Syndigate.info an Albawaba.com company |